Green Thinking Blog

GreenThinkingBlog has a new friend!  Check out Mestew.com.  I am bias because I love their writers, but seriously, this blog is an excellent outlet for peoples’ opinions on any issue.

You may ask, how is this green?  Well, I ask you, what is peace?  Non-exisistent - but, if everyone were able to share their opinion, and have that opinion heard in a venue that would allow for reflection and understanding versus retaliation, it could make quite the difference.  

Having an opinion is a freedom that we often take for granted.  Freedoms of this form can sometimes disrupt the peace if it doesn’t agree with another.  I say, if you know what someone else’s opinion is, you understand a little more about them & a cultural revolution is born.  Of course, don’t give up your own opinion, hold on to it tight, but know that everyone has their own…like an a**, you know the rest…

Just after we were featured on Mestew, posts appeared stating a disbelief or negative viewpoint on “green” living.  Frankly, I am thankful for those the most.  These opinions have given me insight and provided a challenge to convince them it is extremely important for our health, our planet, and our relationships to practice a greener way of life. 

To our normal audience, there is no convincing to do, but we will always welcome a friendly reminder that you don’t have to be a hippie, a vegan, or an orthodox practioner to be considered green - you just have to make an effort to be mindful of what you do affects everyone and everything in the world around us and for generations to come. 

Thank you Mestew for your support, we can’t wait to see what other opinions are “Served up hot!” YEAH for friends!

There is nothing nicer than the smell of fresh laundry swaying in the breeze, while you watch it from your big front porch sipping lemonade…YEA RIGHT!  Who has time to make laundry so glamorous?! Not me.  But, I also don’t like the fact that I have to burn so much freakin’ energy just so my clothes can fluff…

In the meantime, I have cut down on dryer time by using a drying rack, which works…but we may soon have alternatives.

According to an article written by Angie Lewis, (Greenscape/first Monday/Sept. 2008) Hydromatic Technologies Corp., a local here in Orlando, FL, has created a dryer that uses 50% less energy, drys clothes 41% faster, and greatly reduces the risk of dryer-related fires compared to a conventional dryer.  This innovation uses a nontoxic and nonhazardous heat transfer fluid to heat the air blown inside a dryer.

Owner and entrepreneur, Michael Brown, began his scientific quest in a lab in his garage.  He had previously worked as an appliance repair man and was familiar with thermal fluids.  With this technology, Brown will beat the U.S. DOE’s deadline for “green” energy dryers three years early.

Keep on the lookout for a possible conversion kit for conventional dryers to turn hydronic.

I mean…Pollution Prevention Week! (that’s better)

As always, we are fashionably late and tongue tied…

This week, September 15-21, has been recognized as National Pollution Prevention week by the EPA!

This year’s theme is “Pollution Prevention - Where Sustainable Practices Begin.” So, who is doing what & what are you doing?

Each EPA Regional office runs their own grant programs and prevention activities to reduce pollutants.  To see specifics on your home region, click here.  Specifically, Florida’s theme is “Greening Florida’s Future,” and focused on “green cleaning.”   Local business provided hazardous material drop-offs, if you participated you received a free microfiber cloth.  Other stores provided a green cleaning kit and educational events to stop pollution at the source.

Currently, Florida has three voluntary programs that allow for residents to be conscious of their environment:  Clean Marina Program, the Green Lodging Program, and the Florida Pollution Prevention Program more info here & updates on a later post.

If you have more information about things happening in your region we want to know!  Write us immediately! 

Remember, just because September 21st marks the end of Pollution Prevention Week officially, it is really just the beginning. 

Check out  Traveling the Green Way, a green travel blog that recently featured us on their blog carnival.

They have recognized Greenthinkingblog.com for our article on Critical Mass, the bike event that take place in cities the last Friday of every month.  We were also mentioned for Moving Season!, our post pertaining to being eco-conscious when you are changing up your homeland.

Thanks for reading!

Photo provided by GreenClean.Biz.

I was given a magazine article a couple of weeks ago from a gal at the office & thought it would be interesting to share.  Pinkmagazine.com September/October 2008 issue featured a business woman by the name of Rebecca Reynolds who began her own cleaning company using eco-friendly products.  Green Clean is now looking to expand beyond her hometown of Cleveland by marketing the unique story behind the business.

In brief, Ms. Reynolds was stuck at home for three of her teenage years because of a blood disorder.  This fueled her research for recovery and found that organic foods & products would keep the disorder at bay.  She created her own chemical free cleaners using things like chalk and baking soda.

She has now moved on from just the residential cleaning biz to include carpet services and her own organic store, Planet Green (link to follow at a later date) that sells items like organic mattresses and baby bottles.  The article says Reynolds also gives credit to local networking for her success.  She started with Entrepreneurs for Sustainability and then founded her own eco-friendly group for women-owned green businesses called Green Goddesses.

I felt this was an excellent story of being able to overcome challenges when you are working for a cause by finding an alternative.

Thank you Ms. Rebecca Reynolds!

We have often talked about the pollution our vehicles create, the carbon credits you can purchase for offset, the things you can do yourself to stop contributing to the pollution of our air - but we have yet to really talk about a statement.  By a statement, I mean, an act to say what it is you are fighting for - the word protest is too strong, but statement suffices.

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to participate in Critical Mass.  For those of you who don’t know, Critical Mass or CM is an event that happens once a month, usually on the last Friday, to show cities how unfriendly they are to bicyclists.  Unfortunately, I was unable to attend this particluar event due to my work schedule, but have plans to attend in late September.  Even so, my boyfriend & some other friends did the ride & we have made lifelong friends from the after effects of the event.

The very first ride took place in September, 1992 in San Francisco.  The event grew from 100 riders to 1,000 after four rides that blocked intersections so successfully that it caused a “Critical Mass.”  Today, CM rides take place in an estimated 325 cities.  Without a designated route, riders can seperate and meet with the group again at any time, but this will avoid any sort of clamp by authorities.

The monthly event has been known to cause a ruckus in various cities.  Bikers have been attacked with force by police officers and impatient car drivers -causing damage to both bicycles and their riders and creating felony records for riders across the nation.

In my opinion, the most unique thing about Critical Mass is that it is not an organization.  It has no leaders, it has no specific direction. It is a single idea that has permeated throughout the world with the notion of making bike riding a more acceptable form of transportation.

If you are interested in looking into Critical Mass in your city, check out the directory. Or, check out Wikipedia for further detail on the vocab of this two-wheeled culture.

In a recent drive down the road some friends and I noticed an unusual amount of U-Haul trucks around.  A lot of people are moving at this time of year, myself included.  (I am very excited about our new house, but that may be another post)

The thing about moving is, you need boxes.  You need bags, you need friends, you need to throw things out, you need to get new things.   This can create a lot of waste, and a lot of unecessary waste. 

1.  Boxes - I cannot believe that people actually go to a store & purchase brand new boxes.  Give me a break!  Here are some things I do, and I hope you do too.

• I work at a large facility that gets a lot of shipments in cardboard boxes.  Our company recycles cardboard, but I need those boxes!  So I just ask for them.  Simply put, ask companies if you could please take their empty boxes.
• I have also been in a habit of moving every year, I am pretty much a professional now, but because of that, I found it easier to purchase reusable tubs.  These tubs are large enough for me to handle, stack inside one another, and fit in a closet for future use.  Plus, your friends love to borrow them!
• When you are finished, recycle the cardboard. Puhlease!  Most neighborhood recycling plants take cardboard boxes, just be sure to break them down.  If not,  check out this site that will collect your moving boxes and reuse them.

2.  You need to throw things out.

• Of course you do!  Who the heck wants to move stuff they never use?!  So, here is how you do it, responsibly. Ask your friends if they want it.  This is how I have acquired a lot of my goods - my friends gave it to me. 
• Have a garage sale!  Everyone loves garage sales!  Ours is next weekend, and we wanted all our friends to enjoy the hot weather, the hunt of a bargain, and the glorious funds we will reap, so we bribed them by making it a breakfast gathering.  Quiche & mimosas anyone?  So, any dollars we do make, can help purchase the new necessities for our abode.
• Donate.  We have heard it before & we will say it again, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”  This statement is something that donation collection agencies have lived off of for years!  Your items do not have to go in the trash or landfills for years & years, someone else wants them.  It is wierd, even that sweater your Great Aunt made for you, with the walrus on it, someone wants it.
• Anything else.  Dispose of properly.  Check out our earlier post, “Gettin Rid of Electronic Junk,” for resources.

3. You need to buy things.  Everytime you move into a new place, you need to get some new stuff, it is just the facts of life.  But you don’t need to go crazy!  However, if you do go crazy, make sure you do it where your new live-in boyfriend or girlfriend can’t see you…haha (but I am a little serious).  Remember the phrases you have heard over and over again: Buy locally, buy fair trade, buy eco-friendly. 

• The same rules apply in your new home, maybe even more so.  Make it a goal to be a little more environmentally conscious everyday in your new house.  This could be something very simple, like purchasing longer lasting lightbulbs. 
• For some really neat decor check out Ten Thousand Villages.  Another good place to look is your local markets and art events, you could discover the very next big name to hit the art arena!

Happy Moving!

Remember, food & drinks can do wonders to bribe extra sets of hands to get in on the moving action!

Photo provided by MSN.com

Floatin’ to make a difference, Marcus Eriksen  & Joel Paschal made their way to Hawaii via a raft made of plastic bottles on a 2,600 mile, 3 month journey!  Pretty amazing!

These guys, and Anna Cummins, who performed land duties, make up Algalita Marine Research Foundation’s project called, “JUNK.” The trip was a demonstration to help the group on their goal of getting “single-use” plastics banned, or plastics that are unrecyclable. 

Along the way, a fish attached itself to the craft.  The guys let it tag along for 5 weeks in anticipation of eating it, but when they cut it open, it was full of plastic confetti.  If that didn’t justify their cause, I don’t know what would.

Check out the link above from MSN.com to read more of their grusome adventure for a grand cause.

World Hoop Day took place August 8, 2008.  While we missed it this year, we will be prepared for next!   So, what did we miss exactly?  When you say hoop, how do you mean?  All of your questions have answers.  World Hoop Day is a non-profit organization that provides hula hoops to under privileged kids in areas of devastation. Instead of providing food like many other orgainziation, founder, Annie O’Keeffe concentrates on providing mental benefits that are both fun & provide exercise.

Founded in 2007, 10,000 hoops have been donated and $7,145 in money and hoop related gifts.  Check out their website and see how you can help “Hoop for Peace.”

While at home this evening, I perused a book called A Little Green Book of Environmental Quotes and Comments.  Here is what I found:

A quote by Arch Buchwald, an author, stated in 1970.  How did he know what would happen back then?    (p. 89)

And Man created the plastic bag and tin and aluminum can and the cellophane wrapper and the paper plate, and this was good because Man could then take his automobile and buy all his food in one place and He could save that which was good to eat in the refrigerator and throw away what had no further use.  And soon the earth was covered with plastic bags and aluminum cans and paper plates and disposable bottles and there was nowhere to sit down or walk, and Man shook his head and cried: “Look at this Godawful mess.”

I also found a great lesson for us all.  Joseph Wood Krutch, a writer, was quoted in Time (p 97):

Don’t blow it - good planets are hard to find.

And Jacques Barzun, a historian, gives us hope from The House of Intellect in 1959 (p 87):

If civilization has risen from the Stone Age, it can rise again from the Wastepaper Age.

I believe Jacques also means we can rise from the Oil Age, the High Consumption Age, the Wasteful Age, the Ungrateful Age, we just need to try.

Thanks for reading…that equals trying.